Voters in Switzerland have narrowly approved a rightwing proposal to curb immigration. It imposes limits on the number of foreigners allowed in and may signal an end to the country’s free movement accord with the European Union. The initiative was approved by 50.3% of the votes and was passed by a majority of cantons.

Swiss Info The move by the Swiss People’s Party – known for its anti-foreigner and anti-EU agenda – will see the reintroduction of quotas, as well as a national preference when filling job vacancies and restrictions of immigrants’ rights to social benefits.

Critically, it also stipulates that Switzerland will have to renegotiate its bilateral accord with the EU on the free movement of people within three years or revoke it. This in turn could threaten other bilateral agreements with the EU.

Justice Minister Simonetta Sommaruga described the outcome as “a pivotal decision with far-reaching consequences.” “It reflects unease of population growth in recent years,” she added. The cabinet now must submit a proposal to parliament on how it can be implemented.The government will also start talks with relevant EU bodies and member states in order to discuss the next steps. There is a three-year time limit on such negotiations.

Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter, holder of the rotating Swiss presidency, added the result would make negotiations with the EU on further bilateral accords more difficult. “But it is not a ‘Black Sunday’ for Switzerland. The people have decided and the government will impIement the decision for the best of the country,” he said.

When it comes to quotas, the government said it would set to work “without delay”. The cabinet and parliament also has three years to introduce the restrictions. The initiative calls for quotas to apply to all foreign nationals, including cross-border commuters and asylum seekers. Businesses must also give Swiss nationals priority when hiring staff. The finer details still needed to be worked out, the government said.

However, immigration caps are incompatible with the free movement of people accord whereby EU nationals are free to work or live in Switzerland. The European Commission issued a statement expressing its “regret” that the vote had passed. “This goes against the principle of the free movement of people between the European Union and Switzerland. The Union will examine the implications of this initiative on Swiss-EU relations as a whole,” ran the statement.

Turnout was 55.8%, among the highest attendance in the past decade. In the run-up to the vote, backers had argued Switzerland could not cope with a further increase in the number of immigrants, including asylum seekers, putting an undue strain on the country’s welfare system, housing and traffic infrastructure.

Previously the government has won all votes on the issues, but the People’s Party has boosted its backing over the past two decades. In 2010 voters approved an initiative by the political right to automatically expel foreign criminals from Switzerland. Senior People’s Party parliamentarians have hinted they are considering further political initiatives to restrict access to the Swiss labour market for foreigners, including the introduction of a point system to control immigration, similar to Canada.

Swiss voters are also likely to have the final say over the next two years on other proposals aimed at limiting immigration.

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Comments

it may not have been a landslide victory but atleast we’re making some progress, the 49% needs to wake up and smell the coffee, those dhimmis are like the proverbial ostriches with their head in the sand.

I’ve read this same article in 10 different ‘msm’ sources and NOT ONE mentions islamic immigration, and only 2 mentioned ‘undesirable’ immigrants from Eastern Europe like the Romany. Barely any of them mentioned rising crime either.

From the msm you would think that the Swiss just woke up one day and decided to hate ‘foreigners’. Unless you are a counter-jihadist it would be easy to miss all the things NOT said in these reports.

Many articles repeated that this would hurt the economy because up to 40% of the country’s high tech workers are from Germany, France, and Italy. Somehow I don’t think these are the people the Swiss have in mind when they start closing the borders to ‘undesirables’.

EVERY one of these stories is on a msm site that does NOT have ANY commenting system at all, so people could point out the OBVIOUS. I’ve never seen a story so clearly ‘slanted’ and misreported in the msm.

I propose an eye scanner …. at Swiss ports of entry …. if your eyes are not blue …. you don’t get through ? My eyes are hazel …. to show you …. how above the fray …. am I ! Monedas 1929 Comedy Jihad World Tour

That woman complains that the vote was against the political authorities and the federal government, and she wonders why the voters hadn’t followed their respective parties on “essential issues”, which she stated were against the initiative of the
referendum. Really? So, they, THE PEOPLE, the majority, are wrong, and a bunch of know-nothings who don’t understand what they really need, and must shepherd by THOSE WHO DO KNOW? That the people should follow blindly, and question not their country’s political authorities and federal government, on matters that the people have obviously come to realize as real life and death issue, i.e., of their culture and way of life? How vain, how arrogant, how ignorant, how elitist, how communistic, how fascist is that?

Good for THE PEOPLE. They have spoken, and it’s time that “the authorities” learn to listen. Or, find another line of work.

What a wonderful clip, watching these elites flounder as they’re hit in the face with a wet fish. So gobsmacked that mere sheeples disagree with them, they can only bleat “But we all agreed this was to be a No vote”. Well, not everyone deary!

Elites love referendums when they belatedly become vaguely aware of grumbles in the electorate, want to stamp out disagreement once and for all, know they are right (well that’s a given), and imagine they can win. Typical ignorant voters: can’t follow a script, vote FOR quotas instead of AGAINST. It’s an act of civil disobedience, isn’t it….ISN’T IT!!.

The Swiss don’t want their country over-run by hoardes of alien, muslim, oxygen thieves. They stared down the bullies and voted NO MORE. Regrettably most western governments are too lilly livered to hold a referendum on immigration because they would have to admit that their multi-culty propaganda is a bogus fairy tale designed to destroy our western civilisation.

I understand the Swiss are an armed nation. I hope they don’t have to use it to turn back the tide of shit after the people spoke. My vote is with the Swiss that voted to do the right thing. I wish the American Congress and the half assed administration in my country would do the same. Go Swiss.

No, not all UDC campaigns were specifically targeting muslims (except the minarets ban). Most were targeting criminal foreigners, who, as we all know, happen to be mainly muslims, so much that the government is trying to hide this form public knowledge, same as everywhere else…

I’d say that the general anti immigration feeling is largely fueled by muslims presence and behavior, again, same as everywhere else… This fact certainly helped us win this vote as the Swiss people have had enough of these SOBs…

It’s also right that many muslims come to Switzerland through the EU, and people know that here. But that fact was really NOT discussed during the pre voting the debate between citizens.

This vote was about the Swiss people being just sick and tired from too much global immigration that drives all wages down and brings up the cost of living (housing etc), this is even more true while the rest of europe is in a deep crisis and too many people try to come here.

This vote was about slowing down immigration as a whole, bringing back the good old quotas system that we had before the EU (letting in only as much as we need for our economy). This way it will also be possible to refuse a work permit/entry to those with “funny names/pics” while keeping a politically correct stance 😉

But again, this vote was NOT specifically targeting muslim immigration, unfortunately !

Not yet ! And yes, I’m sure another “targeted” (minarets style), popular vote (referendum) will show up in the coming years 😉

I must correct some facts (title of the article etc) :
This time the vote had NOTHING to do with islam/muslims… It was about labor immigration from the surrounding EU countries and/or eastern european countries (Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia etc).

Of course, the “fwench” (as opposed to French, you guys will understand the difference… 😉 ) are also concerned as despised by many Swiss (big mouth & lazy leftists opportunists), mostly those commuters who work in Switzerland but live and pay taxes in “fwance” driving salaries down…

Anyway, it’s a huge victory for the right wing UDC party and a very serious blow for the UE who are scared that other eU countries (like the UK) will now get out of the open border policy (UE countries citizens are free to settle anywhere in the UE).

All the campaigns prior to this have been against Muslim immigration. And what makes you think there aren’t Muslims from those countries coming to Switzerland as well? Don’t forget, the EU recently decided to give Turkey visa free passage throughout the EU. So my position stands.

The lead up was about the final understanding of the muslum jihad threat iwth open immigration. Well done to the Swiss. What bothers me is the over 49% who voted to open the doors to musdslum savages. Wake up 49% idiots before it is too late.

Cat – thats exactly what I thought. The margins between who voted Yes and who voted No was very slim. The victory was not by a landslide which tells me that there is a rather large % of Swiss Leftist Dhimmis in their country which is a bit of a concern.

Yes, I believe that 1) a large contingent of Commie-corrupted Swiss, 2) another contingent who’s so enamoured of the European-Union that they’re prepared to throw their heritage under the train (and that includes the government, which – like enough others – fits into BOTH categories)…

I saw this today and the explanation was that the wealthy cantons voted for immigration, while less affluent cantons voted against. That figures, since obviously the wealthy can afford being liberal far away from the no-go zones.

Question is, my swiss friend: Would you rather have more or less muslims in your beloved homeland?
Yes the roma & other foreign elements are also causing a few problems but lets be honest, btw all the other foreigners vs muslims, who would you have kicked out if it came down to that?
I’ve never heard of a roma plotting a suicide bombing Bern or London.

The tide is turning in the continent as many europeans are getting real worried.

Christian, if you want to correct some facts about this article, correct your own first. Bonni’s right and you know it : it wasn’t said implicitly but you know very well that the first and foremost concerned as all that useless and unproductive vermin, since you as well have got shitload of muzscum, and not just those from North Africa, as well in your cities.

And by the way, the pendulum swings both ways : you want to complaint about frontaliers ? You want the figures of the Swiss working in France and NOT paying taxes there ? And right now this shit of E.U. may be scared indeed, but keep also in mind they’ve said they’ll simply ignore for now the will of the Swiss, because that’s what they do.

So I’ll tell you what I tell anybody who start putting down my turf : unless you yourself have a clean house, don’t you get on your high horses and have the nerves to bash/criticize other houses, because I happen to know you house well enough to know it’s in no better state than the rest of Europe (though it’s not part of the E.U. as such), and this in many ways.